


The Betrayal

by Liniel



Series: The Norrath Saga [4]
Category: EverQuest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-21
Updated: 2019-07-21
Packaged: 2020-07-10 03:20:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19899013
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Liniel/pseuds/Liniel
Summary: Young dark elf Chianie gets a visitor claiming to be her sister.





	The Betrayal

Sixteen-year-old Chianie returned home later than usual that night. She’d been practicing sword fighting with her father and time had flown by as it always did at the training halls. Her muscles were sore after so many hours of practice, and now all she wanted was to soak in a hot bath before she went to bed. Wearily she dragged herself up the stairs, shutting the oaken door behind her as she entered her room to sit down on the bed and pull her boots off.

There was a tap at the door. Chianie sighed inaudibly when a muffled voice came through: "My lady? There is a woman here to see you... A Miss Velkyn." Chianie scowled. “What, at this late hour?" She got up to open the door, still holding a boot in her hand. Her eyes narrowed slightly at the sight of the trembling manservant who'd knocked. He seemed agitated – very agitated indeed. "What is the matter, George? Is there something you're not telling me?"

The servant cleared his throat nervously. "Oh, eh... It’s just that, the woman claims to be your sister, my lady."

Chia’s frowned deepened; annoyance written all over her features. "You know as well as I do, I don't have any siblings." The servant cowered away from her, but she didn't pay any attention to him now. Surely this “sister” was a beggar or perhaps someone wanting a favor... Still, her curiosity was peaked, and she wanted to see this visitor for herself. She pulled the boots back on and walked down the flight of stairs.

As she reached the bottom of the stairs, Chia nodded to the woman who was waiting there. She was a small Teir’Dal with silvery pink hair and mauve skin. Her features – was there a trace of resemblance or just the shadows playing tricks on her mind?

With a smile that was so close to a smirk, the stranger dipped in a curtsey. "Miss Noquar? I am honored to be received.” She tilted her head back and met Chia’s eyes. “I'm Ailith Velkyn."

To Chianie, the curtsey appeared to be a gesture of mockery rather than of common courtesy. Holding her head high - as she thought befit a noble lady of the Teir'Dal - she nodded graciously in acknowledgement. "You are welcome to house Noquar." Something about this all unnerved her, but she would most certainly not let Ailith notice her concern. "And why do you bother me at this late hour?"

"If you have a moment to spare, I will try to explain. It’s… complicated. Perhaps a matter best discussed outside?" She met Chianie's steady gaze, violet eyes not revealing her trail of thought. Chia crossed her arms, frowning slightly. Ailith's daggers were clearly visible at her waist, and a bow and quiver were strapped to her back. Still, against better judgement, she found herself intrigued. Life was so dull when you were confined to a house the way she had been for years. She motioned at one of the servants. "You there. Fetch me my sword. Let my father know I have gone for a walk in the West District and that he may expect me back in an hour." The servant nodded obediently and scurried off to carry out the command. Chianie remained silent until the servant returned with the blade. She equipped it and turned to Ailith. "Okay. A walk, but you will stay slightly in front of me to the right at all times. Yes? Let's go."

The night air was refreshing, especially after the training halls. As they walked in silence for a while. Chianie thought of her father and how he always used to smile at her and ruffle her hair, calling her his princess. He had once told her he loved her more than he ever thought possible, and that the sheer thought of anything bad happening to her made his throat tighten. She knew this was highly unusual for a Teir'Dal father - usually they treated their children the same way they treated anyone; coldly and cruelly. She adored him, he was her hero - but she was always afraid to disappoint him and so she worked very hard to improve her fighting skills and to act the way he wanted her to.

She glanced at Ailith, waiting for the roguish woman to speak. They walked in silence for a few minutes, and when Ailith finally spoke her voice was neutral and devoid of emotion. "See, once there was a woman, a Teir'Dal. She was pregnant but her lover cared greatly about his reputation and did not want a bastard child. He told his lover to get rid of the infant or he would leave her and remove his protection from her. The night the baby was born, the woman wrapped her in blankets and left her in a Freeport alley to die. By pure chance a streetwalker heard the baby screaming and took pity on her." Ailith clenched her jaw. "But when the girl grew older the harlot was killed by a client, and the child was alone again. She had to adapt to a life on the streets, making money the only way she knew how. Although she was young, she knew how to pick pockets and how to beg for scraps of food. She picked up a few other useful skills here and there, in exchange for her services - studying poisons, how to move without a sound, how to defend herself - even how to read." Ailith stopped to look at Chianie and for just a moment, her voice was soft and quiet. "Life on the streets is hard, Chianie. Only the toughest survive. You have to never trust in anyone, never let anyone close. You are always alone, you have no one but yourself."

Chianie's eyes widened while she listened but she kept quiet, wanting to hear the end of it.

"What kept me alive was my burning hatred - for the people using me, for myself, but especially for my parents, whomever they were. At last I had enough gold to hire the services of a defiler who’d told me that my essence and my mother's essence were so much alike, he could trace her by touching my spirit. So I let him... It hurt like hell. And then he left and for days I didn't see him or hear from him. Until this came by mail." She took out a note from her belt pouch and showed it to Chianie. It read: _Madam Xanithra, The Jade Tiger_

Chianie stared at Ailith, intrigued by the strange story but more than a little bewildered. "Hm, I’m sorry you had to live your life like that, I really am. But I am not sure I understand what it’s got to do with me. If you want money… "

"One would think the daughter of a shadow knight would have learned to never pity anyone or to show mercy." Ailith smirked, her voice filled with contempt. "I went to see this madam Xanithra – my mother - who turned out to be a courtesan, working the taverns of Freeport. She denied ever having children, but after a bit of... persuasion..." Ailith smiled coldly at this. "...she told me the same story I have just told you." Ailith sat down on a bench. Chianie seated herself next to her, still waiting for more of an explanation. "She also told me, that even though my father soon married a noble lady - the union was arranged by their fathers - Xanithra remained his mistress for many years to come. It later turned out his wife could not bear children, her womb was barren. A few years down the road, Xanithra became pregnant again and gave birth to another girl child. This time, the man wanted an heir and took the child with him to raise her - but his wife had one condition for accepting the girl into their home. He had to leave his mistress and never see her again. He agreed, and Xanithra was devastated. Not only had she lost her two children, but now she lost her lover as well. She had no choice but to go back to the only thing she ever was good for."

"When I told her who I was, she claimed she wanted to make up for what she did to me, when she left me on the streets to die. I embraced her... and slid my dagger into her back. I had coated the blade in a fairly weak poison, hoping it would take her hours to die - but she only lasted for an hour, no more." Ailith sounded disappointed. "Before she died though, she revealed the name of my sister. Chianie." She fell silent, violet eyes studying Chia's face.

Chianie stared at Ailith. Somehow, she knew the story to be true. It all made sense somehow. A thousand thoughts flew though her head, a thousand questions. But of them all, only one thing mattered to her now. My father lied to me. Her world fell apart. She knew she was different from most of her kin, she had always known - but her father had spared her life in spite of what he considered her flaws her to be. He had grown to love her, she knew this. And still he had lied to her. A new feeling grew in her heart and she was not sure she liked it. She felt utterly betrayed, and when she turned to Ailith her voice was strained. “You sought me out. Surely you have a reason other than to tell your tale of woe."

Ailith smirked. "Why, is that hate I see in your eyes? Good for you. For a moment there I thought you didn't have it in you." The words sounded so Teir’Dal, but there was mockery in Ailith’s voice. "But you’re right, I seek you for a reason. You’re a warrior, right? And I find myself in need of some muscle for a job that I took on. Way I see it, you owe me. You got the life I should’ve had and now it’s time for you to pay me back”. She let the words hang between them.

Chianie remained silent, jaw clenched tightly, glaring at Ailith.

"Alright. I don't need an answer this instant. I'm gonna wait for you here tomorrow night, and I will have your answer then." Without waiting for Chianie's response, Ailith stood, slipped into the shadows and was gone.

Chianie spat on the ground where her sister stood just a moment ago. Her voice was pained as she muttered: "It is not hate. It is disgust." She felt sickened, and leaned forward to throw up. She wanted to tear off her own skin, rip out her own heart, anything to remove the taint from her that was the curse of her people. The Teir'Dal were sprung from hate, corrupted, twisted and perverted. It sickened her what they had become, and how they relished the evil that was within. Not only Teir'Dal, but all of Freeport. Puppets to the Overlord's will, they were, all of them. Suddenly she knew what she had to do. She could not face her father now, not after what she had just learned. She needed to leave, to go far away where she could be free from the boundaries of her race. But first, she would stop the madness, she would end his life or die trying. _Lucan D'Lere._


End file.
